From Jackass to Badass: A Timeline of the Downfall and Resurrection of LeBron James

It's been almost 10 years since LeBron James entered the NBA as the most exalted athlete in league history, and what a journey it's been. A tale of two halves, really. In the beginning, we have a hometown hero in Cleveland who's adored, playful, and cheered on with absolute obedience. But ever since he took his "talents to South Beach," the republic's been more inclined to spit on the throne than bow to The King. From the hype of his senior year in high school, to The Decision, this is a timeline of the downfall and resurrection of LeBron James.

RELATED: The 10 Dumbest Reasons Why People Still Hate on the Miami Heat

Date: 2003

The attention LeBron James receives as a high school senior is unprecedented. ESPN broadcasts his games on national television, he appears on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and spectators pay a purported $100 per ticket to see him ball. James doesn't fold under the intense spotlight, either. He averages more than 30 PPG and leads St. Vincent-St. Mary's to an Ohio state championship.

He also accepts a Hummer H2 for his 18th birthday and was suspended for receiving a pair of throwback jerseys as payment for posing for pictures. Teenagers can't handle the crippling pressure of post-prom coitus, so LeBron's empire building is pretty badass by comparison.

Date: 2003-2004

At 18 years old, LeBron James is the most hyped player to enter the NBA since, well, ever. Since most kids that age can barely manage a part-time gig at the driving range, one might have expected James to stumble out of the gates. He didn't. The King scores 25 points in his NBA debut and averages 20.9 points, 5.9 assists, and 5.5 rebounds per game during the season. He becomes the youngest Cavalier to ever win Rookie of the Year and joins Michael Jordan and Oscar Robertson as the only rookies in NBA history to average more than 20 points, five rebounds, and five assists.

Date: Summer 2004

Even for a guy with "Chosen 1" tattooed on his back, LeBron James has some balls. During the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, James' ego was purportedly so out of control that Team USA considered dropping him from the roster for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. LeBron's inner circle earned the not-so-affectionate nickname of "The Enablers" and, in many ways, stories of selfishness and outrageous demands become a scapegoat for the team's failure.

Date: May 2007

James' Cavalier teammate, Ira Newble, writes a letter condemning the Chinese government for being complicit to the genocide of people in Darfur. The letter is signed in support by most of the Cleveland Cavaliers, but James' autograph is noticeably absent. The King defends himself by saying he doesn't have enough information about the issue, but the Internet ain't buying it. James is shrouded in a real controversy for the first time in his NBA career. At best, he looks clueless and out of touch. At worst, he looks like a spineless corporate shill. Either way, he looks like a jackass.

Date: 5/31/2007

At 22 years old, LeBron leads the start-up Cavs to the Eastern Conference Finals. Facing a Pistons team that's led by veterans like Ben Wallace, Chauncey Billups and Rasheed Wallace, few people expected Cleveland to make it this far—let alone advance. With the series tied 2-2, James takes over in Game 5, scoring 48 points overall and 29 of his team's last 30. Yes, let that one sink in for a second. Cleveland wins a deciding Game 6 before getting waxed by the Spurs in the Finals. The moment proves that LeBron—by himself—is able to carry a weak team. For the next three seasons, the Cavaliers are considered a title threat.

Date: 5/2/2008

For the third straight year, LeBron & Co. face the Washington Wizards in the first round of the playoffs. And for the third straight year, Cleveland hopes to advance. It's a series that includes 13 technical fouls, a suspension, and a famous retort from LeBron. When asked to respond to the Wizards' DeShawn Stevenson calling him "overrated," LeBron says, "It's almost like Jay-Z saying something bad about Soulja Boy. There's no comparison." In the deciding Game 6, James records his third career playoff triple-double. Apparently he's badass enough to handle a physical series. And Jigga made a song about it.

Date: 5/22/2009

In Game 2 of the 2009 Eastern Conference Finals, the Cavaliers set up an inbounds play with one second remaining. Cleveland trails Orlando 95-93. LeBron catches the ball, pivots, and fires a prayer from three-point range. The ball shreds the net at the horn and LeBron celebrates by doing his best wild bull on bath salts impression.

Cleveland eventually loses the series, but the buzzer beater credits LeBron with one of the NBA Playoffs' signature moments and capstones his first MVP season. Orlando eventually wins the series, though, and LeBron enters another offseason without a ring.

Date: 5/13/2010

In his final three games as a Cavalier—all second round playoff losses to the Celtics—James commits 19 turnovers and averages just 18 PPG. Most experts pick the Cavaliers to advance but, once again, it's an early exit for James. After seven seasons in the league, critics begin to pigeonhole the pride of Akron as a guy who "can't win the big game." James, who likely grew sick of answering the question "What went wrong this year?," decides to take his talents to South Beach during the offseason.

Date: 7/8/2010

James declares that he's signing with the Miami Heat on national TV, consequently holding several NBA franchises hostage. ESPN looks like a whore, LeBron looks like a jackass, and Cleveland reels from having just been kicked in the butthole. The Decision is a cautionary tale in what happens when a thoughtless millionaire takes control of their "brand." The absolute biggest misstep of LeBron James' career.

Date: 7/9/2010

After locking up the two biggest names in free agency, the Heat anoint their recently purchased dynasty with a welcome party. Cue the light show, pyrotechnics, and three fully uniformed clowns on bar stools. The presentation is hollow, like a Super Bowl halftime show without the game. And things only get worse when LeBron and his buddies begin speaking.

Dwyane Wade describes them as "arguably the best trio to ever play the game of basketball." Between admiring his own arm tattoos and echoing Oprah-like platitudes, James implies the beginning of a decade-long dynasty with the now infamous soundbite "Not two, not three, not four, not five, not six not seven..." in reference to the number of Heat championships they plan to win. Oops. If The Decision turned you into a LeBron hater, the Heat's "Welcome Party" validates your disdain.

Date: Trend

In today's game of spastic head jerks and exaggerated falls, LeBron James is a poster child for the NBA's flopping crisis. At 270 pounds, this dude can't take a shove from AARP card carrier Nazr Mohammed without acting like he just stepped on a live land mine. To us, this seems like the most glaring and easy-to-fix dent in LeBron's image. Just keep your feet, boss.

Flopping is a lot like when businessmen sport Brooks sneakers on their walk from the train to the office. Long term it's probably good for you, but you will absolutely look like a jackass. LeBron baits a lot of whistles with his flaring about, but there's nothing badass about a Carlos Boozer post move blasting you into the third row. Oh wait, LeBron doesn't flop. How could we forget?

Date: 6/12/2011

LeBron James, and to a large degree the Miami Heat franchise, had no identity in 2011. The beloved hometown hero becomes the NBA's most hated player overnight and tries, rather unconvincingly, to embrace his role as a villain.

During the 2011 NBA Finals, every fan outside of Miami is pulling for Dallas. The Heat are to the NBA as Sgt. Slaughter was to the WWE, a common enemy that's easy to rail against. In many ways that hasn't changed, but fresh off of the heels of The Decision and "The Welcome Party," hatred for Miami is especially turnt. Dallas wins the series in six games. Miami's preemptive celebration becomes cannon fodder for Internet memes. And haters that criticize LeBron as a guy who "chokes on the biggest stage" get louder.

Date: 6/21/2012

Winning takes care of everything, apparently. Embattled athletes can pull out one page ads thanking fans and hire public relations people to write disingenuous statements, but nothing turns the herd quite like winning. By hoisting the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy in 2012, LeBron quiets the critics that say he can't win the big game, he puts a dagger in the groin of Miami Heat haters, and, most importantly, he changes his career narrative. LeBron needs a fresh start and this exact moment is a turning point.

Date: 2012-2013

James peaks after winning a championship, no fall off here. He sets career highs in rebounds per game (8.0) and three-point percentage (.406), while posting an all-time low in turnovers per game (3.0). He's an unstoppable 56 percent from the field and wins his fourth MVP Award. We're a week or so away from finding out if he'll win his second consecutive NBA championship, but it's been a badass campaign thus far for LeBron.

For all the noise that's talked about the "Big Three" destroying the NBA's competitive balance, there's little said of how a common enemy is actually good for the league. The NBA's top-heavy, and has been for some time. In fact, since 1980 there have only been five NBA Finals' that did not involve the Bulls, Lakers, Heat or Spurs. It's hard to make the case for Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, and Chris Bosh destroying parity because the NBA's been substantially uneven for almost 35 years.

Miami is an insufferably superficial city and, rather appropriately, hosts the NBA's most self-absorbed team. We know this piece is about LeBron James, but don't get it twisted. Wade's smug sneer, Chris Bosh's raptor face, and the totally aloof seat-fillers in American Airlines Arena have as much—if not more—to do with James' low Q Score as The Decision. LeBron James is so good at basketball that it's almost unfair, which makes that team even easier to hate.

No one man should have all that power, so we become impassioned fans of the Spurs, we put Roy Hibbert on a pedestal, and—if only for a series—find Joakim Noah's antics endearing. Time will decide LeBron James' legacy, but without him we'd likely have a Pacers vs. Spurs finals. Yawn. You might not root for LeBron James, but he gives you something to root for and that's pretty badass.